“Let me see… click here.”
Ai Yue operated the tablet, and the walls of the boss room shifted accordingly.
The rotating gears moved and meshed with each other, eventually forming a steampunk-style gear elevator, while a passage opened in the ceiling.
The elevator ascended, allowing Ai Yue and the others to return to the entrance — which was also the exit — via the shortest distance possible.
“Those robots don’t seem to be showing us any hostility anymore.”
Bululu, whose innate sensitivity to danger and hostility was heightened due to the weakness of her race, spoke as she watched the small robots they encountered during the ascent.
Before, those robots would have likely attacked them at any cost, perhaps even rushing headlong into the elevator shaft and falling to their deaths regardless of whether they could reach them or not.
Of course, if the Management AI were smart enough, it might have had them form a bridge or something similar. However, now that the Management AI had been defeated and completely submitted to Ai Yue, they would never know if it was truly capable of such a feat.
“I checked the logs. The primary function of those robots isn’t even combat. They’re just Engineering Robots responsible for maintaining this Dungeon Instance. Those weapons are actually for engineering purposes, like the Laser Rays meant for cutting damaged structures.”
“Ah… well…”
Bululu was left somewhat speechless by the information Ai Yue revealed.
It turned out that the opponents who had forced them into a hard-fought battle and caused them so much trouble weren’t even specialized in combat. They were just non-combatants pressed into service, which was no different from fighting them with one hand tied behind their back.
If those robots had been entirely for combat… their combat power would be unimaginable.
“As expected, the name ‘World Engine’ isn’t just for show…”
Initially, she thought the name of this Dungeon Instance was just a common title. For example, there was a Dungeon Instance called the “Abyss of Destruction” that her younger self had cleared with ease in no time. It wasn’t destructive, nor was it an abyss; at most, it was a bit deep, requiring a few large leaps to get out.
Incidentally, most Dungeon Instances could be cleared repeatedly. It seemed that after becoming a Dungeon Instance, certain unknown changes would occur in the environment. Except for treasures, some resources and monsters would automatically refresh after a period of time. Therefore, the “Abyss of Destruction” had now become a place similar to a mine, where people would occasionally go down to collect ore.
As for the “Relics of the Lost World Mechanism,” it was an exception.
“Wait, now that the Dungeon Instance has been cleared and has become a one-time thing, if the other Demon Kings ask…”
“Oh, there’s no need to worry about that.”
Ai Yue replied while flipping through the logs.
“Although people can’t just enter at will anymore, it’s still possible as long as they pass verification. As for materials and such, aside from smashing those robots into scrap metal, there’s basically nothing here. At most, one could study their structure, but with the technological level of this world, it’s obviously impossible to replicate them anytime soon.”
Let alone research, it was impossible to even understand how they worked, as the technological level of this place far exceeded the understanding of the Demon Race and every other race in the world. Asking the Demon Race to study these things was like asking a fish to study a steam engine; they wouldn’t understand the principles, let alone recognize the fire inside.
“As for treasures… hm? There don’t seem to be any.”
“Don’t seem to be?”
Bululu caught the confusion in Ai Yue’s voice.
“Yeah, there seemed to be some originally, but they’re gone now. Look.”
With that, Ai Yue handed the tablet to Bululu.
However, looking at the dense text on the screen, Bululu found it completely incomprehensible and felt her head spin.
She didn’t even feel this way when handling paperwork! As expected, Master Ai Yue was skilled in both the pen and the sword, with every skill standing at the pinnacle!
“Master Ai Yue… please forgive my lack of ability. I cannot comprehend such profound knowledge…”
“Profound…?”
Hearing that word, Ai Yue felt perplexed but didn’t pay it much mind.
After all, because she was a game developer, the logs were organized in that specific way. The content on the tablet was similar, so it was normal for someone without relevant experience to find it incomprehensible.
“Well, anyway, there are records of valuable items similar to treasures, but I can’t find them when I access the surveillance cameras now.”
“Could it be that they were moved because of the robots’ maintenance?”
“Maybe? I’ll do a full inspection when I have time. Now that the structure of this place can be changed at will according to my thoughts, it won’t take long.”
The technological level of “World Engine M-0” had reached a point where even the designer, Ai Yue herself, couldn’t quite understand it. Being able to change the internal structure at will without affecting its operation was practically an illogical existence.
After all, she was only responsible for writing the settings. It was like conceiving the effect and appearance of a spell in reality; you couldn’t possibly know the principles of that spell or how to cast it in the real world.
After the game became reality, the remaining details were filled in, and Ai Yue didn’t understand that part.
“Um… in that case, why didn’t Mama Ai Yue just teleport us out or move the entrance in front of us?”
Suddenly, after listening to Ai Yue, Kurimu, who had been silent, asked.
How should she put it… that was indeed a good question.
“Uh…”
What should she do? She couldn’t very well say that she simply hadn’t thought of it for a moment, could she?
“…Ah! I know!”
But before Ai Yue could speak, Kurimu shouted as if she had figured it out herself.
“Mama Ai Yue must have a reason for doing this! It’s that thing!”
“…Indeed.”
‘So, which “thing” is it!?’
Forget it. She was just a child, after all. What could she be thinking? Most likely, she thought it was for a reason like confirming whether the robots were truly no longer hostile toward them during the departure.
In any case, they had arrived, so there was no need to keep faking it.
“The exit is just ahead.”
With that, Ai Yue led the two children out of the Dungeon Instance and back to the Demon Realm.
Just as when they arrived, they reappeared in the outskirts, greeted by the familiar flow of Magic Power and the environment.
“It’s probably been nearly one day since we entered the Dungeon Instance. That was pretty quick.”
Looking at the sky that had already turned completely dark, Ai Yue remarked.
However, at that moment, Bululu’s voice interrupted her moment of reflection.
“Master Ai Yue, I have received over 1,000 Communication Magic messages.”
“Wait, 1,000? What’s the content?”
Since the Dungeon Instance was isolated from the outside, ordinary Communication Magic couldn’t reach Bululu and the others inside. That was likely why so many had accumulated.
But wasn’t 1,000 a bit too many?
“…Our Demon King Castle is under attack.”
“…Huh?”